Improvement in fences



BHAYDEN. Fence.

No. 207,518. ted Aug. 27,1878.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEETGE.)

lPETER HAYDEN, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO.

iMPROVEMENT IN FENCE'S.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 267,518, dated August 27, 1878 August 2, 1878.

.To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, PETER IIAYDEN, of Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State ot' Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Felices, of which the following is a specification:

This invention relates to that class offences in which the panels are formed of wrought or iexible metallic rails; and its object is to pro` vide for such fences a substantial and cheap metallic post, having a neat appearance, light, and capable of supporting the rails iirmly in proper position. Metallic posts for this class of fences have heretofore been formed of both cast and wrought metal, and having various forms of devices for supporting the rails. Among others may be mentioned a concave or semi-cylindrical post, open at its back, and having tongues punched out from its face for supporting the rails; also, a hollow cylindrical post, formed in one piece, and having a series of tongues punched out in a line from top to bottom. rI he semicylindrical or concave post is objectionable, for the reason that it is unsightlyin appearance and requires, to give it strength, a thickness of metal which makes it very expensive and unwieldy. rIhe hollow cylindrical post is light and neat; but a post of this kind formed in one piece is very expensive of manufacture, from the fact that the metal must be rst rolled dat, the rail supporting tongues be then punched out, and the metal then given its cylindrical form by folding and welding upon a mandrel, great care being necessaryT to avoid forcing the sup lporting-tongues back into the spaces from which they were punched, and so rendering them useless.

In my invention I comprise all the beauty of appearance and strength of the cylindrical post made as above set forth, while reducing the cost of manufacture very greatly, providing a post better adapted for packing, for shipping, and handling and to this end it consists in the combination, in ametallic fence, of a series of hollow cylindrical posts, each coinposed of two semi-cylindrical parts, one of -which is provided with a longitudinal series of tongues punched outward from its wall, and series of iexible metallic strips or rails connecting said posts, and each of which application filed is bent once around each post and support-ed by one ofthe tongues thereof, thereby holding the intermediate portions of the two parts of the posts iirmly together and preventing their separation.

In the accompanying drawing, 'Figure I s a view in elevation ot' a fence constructed according to my invention, some of the rail-strips being shown not twisted. Fig. 2 is a view of the detached semi-cylinders and cap of which the post is composed. Fig. 3 is a view ofthe post-point. I `i g. 4 is a detail view.

TheletterA indicates the posts, each of which is composed of two semi-cylindrical parts, a and b, the part l) having punched out from its wall a longitudinal series of tongues, c, which serve to support the rails D, which form the panels of the fence. In forming these posts luse the saine rolls-for all the semi-cylindrical parts, and after rolling a sufficient number oneha-lf of these parts have the tongues c punched from their walls by any suitable metalpunching-machine. 'The semi-cylinders may be formed from thick sheet or boiler iron, or may be rolled directly from the bloom, if desired. The points E, which penetrate the` ground and forni the foundation of the posts, are each provided with a socket, d, into which fit the bottoms of the two semi-cylindrical parts, and by which said parts are held well together at the ground, the tops being held together in asimilar manner by a cap, F

In building a fence, I first set the posts at a proper distance apart, and after having secured the end of one of the strips or rails l, untwisted, to the first post just above its lowest tongue, by bending it around and riveting it to itself, as shown in the drawing, Aat j', I stretch the strip to the next post and insert it between the bottom tongue and the body ot' the next post, and then bend it entirely around the post, passing it below and at the base of the tongue, and then carry it directly tothe succeeding post and secure it to the same in a similar manner, and so on. After having thus stretched all the stripsto forni the panels of the fence I twist each of the strips by seizing it at its middle between two posts and turning it sufficiently to take up the slack, using a suitable instrument for this purpose. After all the strips have been twisted I inspeci; the entire fence carefully, and, by further twisting here and there, equalize the tension, so that the posts will all be maintained in a proper position. Y

It will be observed that the winding of the strips above and below the tongues c prevents these strips or rails from becoming displaced either upward or downward.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim is- The combination, in a metallic fence, of a series of hollow semi-cylindrical posts, each composed of two cylindrical, parts, one of which is provided with a longitudinal series of tongues punched outward from its wall, and

series of flexible metallic strips or rails connecting said posts, and each of which is bent once around each post and supported Vby one of the tongues thereof, thereby holding the intermediate portions of the two parts of the posts firmly together, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand in the presence 0f the subscribing witnesses.

PETER HAYDEN.

Witnesses: v

JOHN M. GWINNELL, A. HILL. 

